New National Party (NNP) flag (1998-2006)

According to its website, the New National Party (NNP) logo represents a renewed vigour, and the dynamism and energy
of the Party with its new message. It is a modern design which
enhances the strong symbol of the sun and intensifies our colours of gold,
blue and green. Its design reflects and indigenous quality and the broad
based membership of our party. It takes the main elements of our old logo
and moulds them into a single and powerful emblem, which together with
our new slogan, strengthens our image and drives home our message in the
lead up to the 1999 elections and beyond...
Info from the nnp-website.
Dov Gutterman, 22 Mar 1999

The NNP announced a merger with the ruling ANC in 2004. The parties
agreed to fight the 2006 general election under the banner of the ANC. The
NNP has effectively disbanded following the elections with many of its members
joining other political parties.Bruce Berry, 29 Apr 2006

National Party (NP) (1939-1998)

The National Party (NP) was the ruling party in South Africa from 1948 until
26 April 1994 when the ANC came to power. The NP was
formed in 1912 and was committed to the defence of Afrikaner interests, the
abandonment of South Africa's ties with Britain and pursuing a policy of
"separate development" between the races - later institutionalized as
apartheid. According to Philip Rault's paper on Afrikaner Political
Flags presented at the XVII International Congress of Vexillology in Cape
Town (1997), the NP initially had no particular emblem or flag. A flag
using the then national colours was finally adopted in 1939 comprising a blue
gunpowder horn, fimbriated in white, in the centre of an orange field. In 1937
orange was adopted as the official party colour.

image by
Martin Grieve, 23 Apr 2005

The powder-horn (kruithoring)
was symbolic of the Great Trek of 1836 - 1852 when a number of Afrikaners (known
as the Voortrekkers) left
the Cape Colony to settle in the interior and in the process established a
number of Afrikaner republics. Rault comments that the power-horn was borrowed
from the arms of the Orange Free State, which were a gift of the Dutch King
William III to the Orange Free State government in 1856. Its three horns
were taken from the arms of the House of Orange - a hunting horn azure enguichee
gules. The House of Orange has used a hunting horn symbol since the middle
ages and a horn still features in the arms of the Dutch Royal House as well as
in those of the French city of Orange. Bruce Berry, 25 April 2005

I am writing a thesis on Marlene van Niekerk's novel in Afrikaans 'Triomf'.
I have been trying to research the NP flag as the writer relies heavily on
symbolism of the party. I found your page of South African political flags very
useful as the flag with the sun links very nicely with my studies. However,
there is also heavy referencing to moons as well as suns and I was wondering if
you have any knowledge about the moons on their flag or any other sources that
might
enlighten me?
Jessica Griffiths, 12 Mar 2006

The National Party apparently had no particular emblem during the first 25
years of its existence. In 1934 at the Junior National Party conference, orange
was adopted as the junior party's official colour. In 1937, the Federal
Council of the Gesuiwerde Nasionale Party recommended that orange would
be the party's official colour in all four provinces and in 1939 a flag was also
adopted consisting of an orange field charged with a blue powder horn (kruithoring)
outlined in white. These were in fact the colours of the then
national flag of South Africa. The powder horn was
supposedly symbolic of the Great Trek and is certainly
borrowed from the Arms of the Orange Free State (OFS).
However, the three horns on the OFS coat of arms had their origin in the horn
which was a traditional emblem of the House of Orange of the Netherlands and
that was originally a bugle horn. Regarding it as a powder horn was therefore a
mistake. As the party emblem, the powder horn appeared mainly on posters and as
lapel badges.

At the beginning of the 1980s, the powder horn was progressively replaced by a
new logo consisting of the letters 'NP' with an arrow pointing upwards, in the
colours blue, white and orange. This logo was first used during the general
election campaign in 1981. Although the logo did not appear on flags it was used
on white vertical banners.

sent
by Andre Burgers, 14 Mar 2006

On 29 April 1993 the NP did away with the powder horn and the orange, white
and blue as its official emblem and colours and adopted a new flag (shown
above). This flag consists of diagonal bars of blue, white, yellow and green.
The centre of the white bar is charged with a stylized sun which symbolized
life, light, warmth and growth. Just as the sun stabilizes the entire solar
system, so does the NP stabilize South African politics said the then South
African President and NP leader, F.W. de Klerk.

Another change occurred later in the 1990s when along with its name change to the
New National Party (NNP). The NNP adopted a new emblem and
flag. According to the announcement "...the new NNP logo represented a renewed
vigour and the dynamism and energy of the New National Party with its new
message. It is a modern design which enhances the strong symbol of the sun and
intensifies our colours of gold, blue and green. Its design reflects the
indigenous quality and broad based membership of our party".Andre Burgers, 14 Mar 2006

image
by Bruce Berry, 25 April1996

The party changed its flag and colours from the former South African national colours
of orange, white and blue as well as its kruithoring symbol on 29 April
1993 (see SAVA Newsletter
05/93). The new sun logo symbolizes :

red sunbeams - warmth

blue - sky and water

green - nature and the prosperity it brings

white - peace and unity

gold/yellow - mineral wealth

The flag comprises a blue diagonal panel near the hoist with a white fimbriation
and yellow narrow stripe. In the centre is a white diagonal panel in the
centre of which is a yellow sun with red beams radiating outwards. the
third panel with inner white.
Bruce Berry, 25 April 2005